Display stand



E. J. .CONDON' 2,253,764

DISPLAY STAND Filed Nov. 2', 1939 MIN INVENTOR. fl/wwjz/raa rg v I ATTORNEY ,4.

Patented Aug. 26, 1941 UNITED STATES-PATENT OFFICE DISPLAY STAND Elmer J. Condon, Muncie, Ind., assignor to The Moore Company, Muncie, Ind., a corporation of Indiana Application November 2, 1939, Serial No. 302,496

Claims. .(Cl. 211-28) My invention relates to a display stand or easel suitable for use in displaying a bed spring or a combination of a bed spring and a mattress.

Among the objects of my invention are to produce a display stand which will firmly hold a bed spring, with or without an associated mattress, in a generally upright position; to provide a display stand which, while being no larger than necessary to support a relatively narrow mattress, may still provide an adequate support for relatively wide mattresses; and to produce a 'Adjacent the front of the base, I provide a subframe connected to the base through the medium of links and so arranged that it may occupy either a position against the face of a bed spring resting against the aforesaid support or a more nearly horizontal position in which it is adapted to receive the lower end of a mattress resting against the face of such a bed spring. An interlock is provided for holding the sub-frame in either of the positions mentioned, and the subframe is made extensible so as to provide support for mattresses of varying widths.

The accompanying drawing illustrates my invention: Figs. 1 and 2 are side and front elevations respectively of the display stand, the former showing a bed spring and, in dotted lines, a mattress supported thereon; Fig. 3 is a fragmental vertical section on a somewhat enlarged scale on the line 3-3 of Fig. 5 showing, in full lines, the display stand in condition to receive a bed spring only, and in dotted lines, the position occupied by the sub-frame when the support is knocked down for shipment; Fig. 4 is a fragmental section similar to Fig. 3 but illustrating the stand in the condition existing when both a bed spring and a mattress are to be displayed; Fig. 5 is a generally vertical section on the line 55 of Fig. 3; Fig. 6 is a fragmental section on the line 66 of Fig. 3; and Fig. 7 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 5 but showing the sub-frame in an extended position.

The stand illustrated in the drawing comprises a base Ill having end members II and desirably supported upon rollers I2. Conveniently, the base is formed of angle iron arranged with its horizontal flange extending inwardly of the base, and its Vertical flange extending upwardly, as is clear from Fig. 6, but other types of construction may be used if desired. To the end members ll 1 of the base I secure a U-shaped yoke M which extends generally vertically from the base and which is held in fixed position relative thereto as by means of one or more braces l5 extending downwardly and rearwardly from a point intermediate the height of the yoke I 4. The yoke l4 and braces l5 are detachably secured to the base In, as by bolts l6, so that they can readily be removed in order to facilitate packing and shipment of the stand.

Near the front of the base It links 29 are pivotally attached to the end members II, and on the free ends of the links 20 I pivotally mount a retaining member preferably in the form of a sub-frame 2| the end members 22 of which are provided with extensions 23 pivotally connected to the free end of the links 28 as by means of rivets 24.

Rigid with the sub-frame 2| are a pair of fingers 26 which conveniently are secured to the extensions 23, as by welding, and which extend generally perpendicularly to the plane of the sub-frame. Both the extensions 23 and the fingers 26 project beyond the rivet 24 as indicat-. ed at 21 and 28 respectively so that either may enter a notch 30 provided in the horizontal flange of the associated end member Ii near the front of the base H].

When a bed spring only is to be supported, the sub-frame 20 occupies the position illustrated in full lines in Figs. 1 and 3. In this condition, the links 20 are generally horizontal and the ends 2'! of the end members of the sub-frame 2| are received in the notches 30 to hold the sub-frame 2| in a position such that it will lie against the front face of a bed spring 35 supported by the base l0 and the yoke I4. Desirably, the yoke I4 is arranged to hold the bed spring35 in a position inclined rearwardly slightly from the vertical, as will be clear from Fig. l. The sub-frame 2|, overlying the face of the bed spring at the lower edge thereof, prevents the lower end of the bed spring from sliding forwardly on the base and thus co-operates with the yoke Hi to hold the spring in the desired position for display.

When the device is to be used to support both a bed spring and a mattress, the links 20 are swung about their common axisof pivotal connection to the base l0 until the ends 21 of the end mem-' bers of the sub-frame 2| are clear of the notches 30, and the sub-frame is then rotated about the common axis of the rivets 24 to bring the lower ends of the fingers 28 above the notches 30. When the links 26 are again restored to their normal horizontal position, the lower ends 28 of the fingers 26 will enter the notches 30, as indicated in Fig. A. With the device in this condition, the bed spring 35 is put in place upon the base, the fingers 26 serving to locate the lower end of the bed spring as did the sub-frame 2| in the condition illustrated in Fig. 3. A mattress placed over the bed spring, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, will be supported upon the subframe 2% and will rest against the face of the bed spring. Because, in this condition, the lower ends of the fingers 28 are disposed in the notches 38, the weight of the mattress on the sub-frame will be prevented from causing it to swing about the front of the base ill as a fulcrum to raise the free end of the link 28.

To provide an adequate support for the mattress, the upper (or rear) face of the sub-frame may be covered with a plane sheet-metal panel 3?; and, if desired, the opposite face of the subframe may be provided with a similar panel 38 upon which advertising matter may be displayed.

Because bed springs usually have rigid bottom frames, the base 50 of my device may have a length considerably less than the width of even the narrowest bed spring which is to be displayed upon it. Mattresses, however, are far less inherently rigid than are the bed springs, and accordingly, it becomes advisable to make the subframe 2i extensible so that it will provide an adequate support for even the widest mattress. Accordingly, as shown in Fig. 7, I provide the subframe 2| with an intermediate cross member 42, and in this cross member and in the end members 22 I provide alined holes for the reception of two pairs of sliding rods 39 and 40. The outer ends of the two rods of each pair are interconnected by a bridge piece 4| which desirably has a width approximating the thickness of the subframe 22 so that when the rods are wholly received within the sub-frame the bridge piece 4| will lie inconspicuously against the ends thereof. To prevent complete withdrawal of the rods 39 and til, their inner ends may be upset or swaged so as to prevent their passage through the holes in the cross member 42 of the sub-frame.

When the device is to be knocked down for purposes of shipment, the yoke 14 and braces I5 are removed and placed adjacent the base I0, and the links 29 are swung upwardly and rearwardly to carry the sub-frame to the position indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3 where its outer edge and the ends of the fingers 26 will rest on the horizontal flanges of the angle irons II at the ends of the base.

I claim as my invention:

1. A display stand for a bed spring, comprising a base, a support extending upwardly from said base near the rear thereof, a pair of links pivoted to the ends of the base on a common horizontal axis and adapted to extend forwardly of said support, a retaining member pivotally connected to the free ends of said links, said base being provided adjacent the free ends of said links with openings, and said retaining member having projections adapted to be received in said openings to hold the retaining member in fixed position projecting upwardly from the base to overlie the front face of a bed spring resting against said support.

2. A display stand for a bed spring, comprising a base, a support extending upwardly from said base near the rear thereof, a pair of links pivoted to the ends of the base on a common horizontal axis and adapted to extend forwardly of said support, a retaining member pivotally connected to the free ends of said links, said base being provided adjacent the free ends of said links with openings, and said retaining member having projections adapted to be received in said openings to hold the retaining member in fixed position.

3. A display stand for a bed spring, comprising a base, a support extending upwardly from said base near the rear thereof, a pair of links pivoted to the ends of the base on a common horizontal axis and adapted to extend forwardly of said support, a retaining member pivotally connected to the free ends of said links, said base being provided adjacent the free ends of said links with openings, and said retaining member having projections adapted to be received in said openings to hold the retaining member in fixed position extending forwardly beyond the front of the base to receive the lower end of a mattress resting against the face of a bed spring supported in a generally upright position by said base and support, said retaining member being provided with one or more fingers extending upwardly between the mattress and bed spring.

4. A display stand for a bed spring, comprising a base, a support extending upwardly from said base near the rear thereof, a pair of links pivoted to the ends of the base on a common horizontal axis and adapted to extend forwardly of said support, a retaining member pivotally connected to the free ends of said links, said base being provided adjacent the free ends of said links with openings, and said retaining member having projections adapted to be received in said openings to hold the retaining member in fixed position extending forwardly beyond the front of the base to receive the lower end of a mattress resting against the face of a bed spring supported in a generally upright position by said base and support.

5. A display stand for a bed spring, comprising a base, a support extending upwardly from said base near the rear thereof, a pair of links pivoted to the ends of the base on a common horizontal axis and adapted to extend forwardly of said support, a retaining member pivotally connected to the free ends of said links, and releasable means acting between said retaining member and said base for selectively holding said retaining member either in a generally upright position adjacent the front of the base or in a position in which it extends forwardly beyond the front of the base.

6. A display stand for a bed spring comprising a base, a support extending upwardly from said base near the rear thereof, a pair of links pivoted to the ends of the base on a common horizontal axis and adapted to extend forwardly of said support, a retaining member pivotally connected to the free ends of said links, and releasable means for selectively holding said retaining member either in a general upright position adjacent the front of the base or in a position in which it extends forwardly beyond the front of the base.

, 7. A display stand for a bed spring, comprising a base, a support extending upwardly from said base near the rear thereof, a pair of links pivoted to the ends of the base on a common horizontal axis and adapted to extend forwardly of said support, a retaining member pivotally connected to the free ends of said links, and releasable means including co-operating provisions on said base and said retaining member for holding said retaining member in a generally upright position to overlie the face of a bed spring resting against said support.

8. A display stand for a bed spring, comprising a base, a support; extending upwardly from said base, a bed-spring retaining member movably supported from said base, releasable means for holding said retaining member generally upright in spaced relation to said support in position to overlie the front face of a mattress resting on said base and against said support, said retaining member being swingable forwardly and downwardly from such position into a second 20 position in which it is adapted to receive and support a mattress resting against the front face of the bed-spring, and means for supporting said retaining member in such second position.

9. The invention set forth in claim 8 with the addition of one or more fingers rigid With said retaining member in position to extend upwardly between the bed spring and mattress.

10. In a display stand for bed springs, a base, mean carried by said base for supporting a bedspring thereon in a generally upright position, a mattress support carried by said base and movable between a position in which it lies within the horizontal limits of said base and a position in which it projects forwardly from said base to receive and support a mattress resting against the bed spring, and means co-operating with said base for holding said mattress support in its forwardly projectin osition.

ELMER J. CONDON. 

